Building Customer Relationships Key to a Successful E-Commerce Site; Experts Share E-Marketing Tips At Ecommerce.chicago.

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 17, 1999--

Building customer relationships, utilizing tools like opt-in email and creating dynamic web sites for online shoppers are key factors in driving traffic to an e-commerce site, according to experts who presented at e-commerce.chicago last week. The program focused on the evolving e-commerce marketplace for merchants and was sponsored by R.R. Donnelley Online Services (www.rrd-ecommerce.com), the Internet solutions division of R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company (NYSE: DNY).

Lauren Freedman, president of the E-tailing Group, said that the number of online shoppers this holiday season is expected to quadruple from last year, and explained how merchants can take advantage of the expected traffic. "Give customers a reason to visit your site by making it user-friendly, visually appealing, and filled with products that may be hard to find in your store," suggested Freedman. "Remember that the top reasons people shop online are product availability, to save money and to avoid crowds."

Jim Williams, vice president and general manager of e-mail services for ClickAction, explained how e-marketers can utilize opt-in e-mail to drive traffic to their site and strengthen customer relationships. "Customers want a service -- not a marketing -- relationship with the companies they buy from. Opt-in e-mail allows customers to choose the information they receive and encourages them to keep visiting your Web site to make a purchase," said Williams. A personalized message, bulleted information or an html link to a specific product are all examples of what to include in an effective marketing e-mail.

Kimberly Williams, vice president of R.R. Donnelley Online Services, stressed the importance of leveraging multi-channel marketing efforts to drive traffic to an e-commerce site. "Because consumers tend to be multi-channel oriented, merchants need to leverage customer contact through all channels, including catalogs, stores and a Web site," said Williams. "Consider a Web site as one more channel through which you can build your customer database and increase your product sales."

R. R. Donnelley Online Services, a leading provider of e-commerce services, provides a full suite of scalable e-commerce solutions as part of an integrated, multimedia strategy to help customers reach end-consumers through a broad range of media. They can meet the expanding business needs of their clients throughout the e-commerce evolution by providing solutions ranging from entry-level applications to customized full-service solutions for more complex applications. Online Services offers solutions including consulting, site design and development, content production services to "stock the shelves" and marketing services to effectively drive traffic.

ABOUT R.R. DONNELLEY & SONS COMPANY

R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company is a leading North American commercial printer and information services company. From content management through logistics and distribution, the company offers the broadest range of integrated services to publishers of catalogs, magazines, books, directories and retail inserts. R.R. Donnelley also provides comprehensive document and communications management services for the financial, investment and healthcare industries. In all of these areas, the company applies its superior skill, scale and technology to deliver solutions that efficiently meet customers' strategic business needs.

A profile of the company, along with news releases, executive speeches and other useful information, is available on the R.R. Donnelley Internet site (www.rrdonnelley.com).